Mets Fire Clubhouse Manager Amid Gambling Probe

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FILE - In this Oct. 2, 2005, file photo, then-New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza embraces Mets clubhouse manager Charlie Samuels after a tribute to Piazza's seven-year career with the Mets, during a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies in New York. A person familiar with the investigation says the Mets suspended Samuels because he's involved in an investigation into illegal gambling being conducted by the Queens District Attorney and the New York Police Department. The team announced the suspension Thursday, Nov. 4, 2010, but did not explain it.

The New York Mets fired their longtime clubhouse manager Friday amid a police investigation into illegal gambling.

The Mets said Charlie Samuels was fired for violating team policies. The club said the decision came after an internal investigation that lasted several months.

This season was Samuels' 27th year on the job. He also helped handle the Mets' travel arrangements.

Samuels has admitted betting on baseball, according to a person familiar with the investigation. He made the admission to an investigator for Major League Baseball in the last month, the person told The Associated Press last week, speaking on condition of anonymity because the probe is ongoing.

The person said Samuels had become involved in an investigation by the Queens District Attorney and the New York Police Department into illegal gambling.

A second person, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said last week that law enforcement is investigating the possibility that Samuels borrowed money from team accounts for short periods of time without authorization and then paid the money back.